48 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE GROUSE 



his researches proved that the kites under observa- 

 tion fed upon squirrels and rabbits, as well as upon 

 peewits, and the young of curlew, wild duck, and 

 pigeons ; but he decided that grouse ' seemed to 

 be their favourite food.' One kite's nest, in parti- 

 cular, was visited on several occasions, and each 

 time 'the young bird had a fresh-killed grouse on 

 the nest.' Further, he goes on to state that he 

 counted the remains of over thirty grouse under the 

 branches of a large fir. ' Some were only bleached 

 and weather-beaten skeletons, and probably had lain 

 for many months.' He considered that all the birds 

 in question had been destroyed by a single pair of 

 kites at the beginning of the season. I fancy that the 

 offenders would have preferred more ignoble prey if 

 it had been forthcoming. Sorry should I be to do 

 any injury to a British kite. But our personal 

 feelings must not be allowed to overpower our better 

 judgment, and the preservation of rapacious birds, 

 however desirable from a scientific or philosophical 

 standpoint, possesses some distinct drawbacks for 

 game-preservers. The male hen-harrier is a lovely 

 bird in his delicate blue garb, and I know no more 

 beautiful sight in nature than a hen-harrier quartering 

 a moor, as I have seen it do in North Uist and other 

 places. But there cannot be any doubt that both 



